Food is our fuel, but for many people, certain foods can trigger painful and annoying reflux or gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.
An estimated one in five Australians experiences reflux, often turning to their local pharmacy for help, medication and advice.
Medication can help to relieve troubling symptoms but taking a closer look at the role of the diet in aggravating reflux is also a good idea.
For those experiencing troubling reflux, consulting a dietitian to develop management strategies can be beneficial in alleviating, controlling and understanding their reflux.
Considering lifestyle factors
Studies suggest that smoking cessation reduces the prevalence, severity and frequency of symptoms of GORD, while other research indicates that diet and weight management also can help to alleviate symptoms of reflux.
- Diet and reflux:
Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) and spokesperson for Dietitians Australia Annaliese Collier says breaking meals up across the day and eating smaller portions can alleviate reflux, as this takes the pressure off the oesophageal sphincter.
- Time, quantity and weight management:
Ms Collier says eating more meals but having smaller portions, as well as not eating close to bedtime can help to minimise reflux symptoms.
Ms Collier also encourages those with GORD symptoms to investigate bowel health, constipation and bloating.
- Food for thought:
Ms Collier says certain foods can trigger or worsen reflux symptoms, such as “foods high in fat … like pastries and pizzas and baked goods”.
“This is due to the fact that fat slows down digestion,” she said.
“This can cause the food to stay in the stomach for longer, and it results in more gastric secretions. So, you actually have a build-up of stomach acid, and then if you’ve got a weakened oesophageal sphincter, that acid is more likely to come back up and repeat on you.
“Another [potential trigger] is spicy food, and this is because there’s actually a nutrient in the spice that slows down digestion, and it’s the same as with the fatty foods.
“So, again, it can cause the food to stay in the stomach for longer, which equals more gastric secretions.
“Spicy food can actually irritate the oesophagus wall, so it can almost imitate reflux in a way.”
- Liquids:
Ms Collier says some liquids can also impact reflux symptoms as they can increase acidity in stomach secretions.
“Things like coffee and alcohol act in a way that increases the acidity of the stomach secretions, but they also relax the oesophageal sphincter,” she said.
“They relax that muscle, so it’s kind of like a double whammy in a way – you’re getting more secretions or more acidity in the stomach and then relaxed muscles that are more likely to cause reflux.”
- Working with a dietitian:
It can be beneficial for people experiencing reflux to help learn strategies to manage their reflux, Ms Collier says.
A dietitian can help people with learning how to split up meals and still maintain nutritional needs, manage constipation and bloating, weight maintenance or management, and management of overall gut health, she adds.
This feature was originally published in the July issue of Retail Pharmacy Assistants e-magazine.
To read the feature in full as it appears in the e-magazine, visit: rpassistants.com.au/retail-pharmacy-assistants-july-2022
